Archive for the ‘Gov.uk’ Category

OK then; it’s 8pm on May 11th and the consultation on HMRC Penalties still shows up on the list of five open consultations from HMRC… but the consultation itself is shown as closed. Conclusive proof, I think you’ll agree, that by “12.00pm” the gov.uk website means “12 noon”.

Look at one small point from the list of open HMRC consultations: the closure date. Here’s a reminder of the current five:

HMRC penalties (Closes 11 May 2015 12:00pm)

Commissioners’ Directions for customs (Closes 15th May 12.:00am)

Tax-advantaged venture capital schemes (Closes 15th May 12:00am)

Removal of manual customs declarations (Closes 5 June 2015 11:45pm)

Reform of the Landfill Communities Fund (Closes 10 June 2015 11:45pm)

So does the first one close at lunchtime or do we have till midnight? Do the next two close at midnight on May 14th, midday on 15th, or midnight at the end of 15th? The last two at least make it clear that they close at the end of the day on 5th and 10th, but, seriously, is representing midnight such a difficult concept in the twenty-first century? It’s a nice notes and queries question, but the Royal Observatory and Greenwich, the owners of GMT so to speak, tell us helpfully that there is no such thing as 12.00am. Noon is when the sun is at the meridian line, so it’s neither “ante meridian” nor “post meridian” – neither before nor after that point in time. The “correct” designation is either 12 noon or 12 midnight. Alternatively you should use the 24 hour clock, in which case it’s 00.00 for midnight and 12.00 for noon.